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Ur. Betty Uiener, the ^ Secretary of Commerce and Resources, declared the governor’s goal “achievable and realistic.” Her secretariat is responsible for travel promotion.
Industry spokesmen agreed, provided the state would do its part. They presented a 10-point shopping list of proposals, the main thrust of which was a call for more aggressive support of tourism by the Commonwealth.
Some of their ideas were constructive, but some, such as their suggestion that the state push for parimutuel betting and a state lottery, received a cool reception from the governor. He noted that these might be resisted by the legislature.
The state is, however, beefing up its tourism promotion program, and that is the genesis of the “Lovers” versus “Exciting Times” debate.
The “Virginia is for Lovers" slogan has been around for more than a decade. It was introduced by Gov. Linwood Holton, and was an instant hit, both within the state and across the country. In recent years, however, its official status has become submerged as other mottos and catch-phrases were tried by tourism promoters. These included, “Love is where you find it” in 1979, “Virginia - More America to the mile” and “Virginia is yours to Love” in 1974-78, and more recently, “Yes, Virginia” in 1980.
In spite of these efforts, however, the Old Dominion slipped behind as a tourist haven. From 1972 until the present, Virginia’s travel industry grew from just under a billion dollars a year to the present $3.3 billion figure, a more than three-fold increase. But the rest of the nation grew from a total of $14 billion to $56 billion, or nearly five-fold. Also, over the past decade Virginia dropped from number one in the nation in public investment in tourist promotion to number fifteen.
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